Times of India mocks Indian archers after Tokyo Olympics loss

Following the defeat of ace archers Deepika Kumari and Pravin Jadhav on the Quarterfinal stage of the Mixed Archery occasion of the Tokyo Olympics, Times of India (TOI) selected to mock the athletes over their efficiency.
On Sunday (May 25), the main nationwide day by day printed a contentious article titled, “Tokyo Olympics: India’s archers dig their own grave, again.” The article authored by Archiman Bhaduri sought to match the defeat at a sporting occasion to digging one’s personal grave. While the headline appeared to be a deliberate try and insult the athletes, the tone of the article was each condescending and demeaning to the sportspersons.
After dropping out to Kim Je Deok and An San of South Korea, TOI mocked the Indian archers by claiming that they have been ‘below par’ and handed over the victory to the opponents ‘on a platter’. “In fact, the Indian archers presented the two Korean Olympic debutants the victory on a platter, although both sides were below par. Archery’s powerhouse Korea won two sets despite scoring a low 35 out of a possible 40. This only showed how India allowed them to escape with victory,” the article claimed.
Screengrab of the contentious article by The Times of India
A supposed skilled in archery, Archiman Bhaduri went on to say that there was no coordination between Deepika Kumari and Pravin Jadhav. “There was little coordination among the Indian archers as they failed to boost each other after a poor shot. Deepika and Jadhav did not look comfortable as a team in their first match too, although they managed to come back from 1-3 down to beat the Chinese Taipei,” he added. The article additional accused Jadhav of ending the Indian marketing campaign on the Olympics along with his shot.
While criticism is a component and parcel of any skilled sportsperson’s profession, an try and demean or undermine his/her achievements solely weakens their confidence and morale. Both Praveen Jadhav and Deepika Kumari hail from humble backgrounds and managed to symbolize India on the largest stage of the sporting world. Kumari is presently the No.1 ranked archer on the earth. After having undergone rigorous coaching for 4 years, they managed to achieve the Quarterfinals.
This feat in itself is a matter of immense satisfaction. But, with the headline and harmful criticism, TOI solely managed to undermine the efforts of the 2 athletes.